Ravana
Ravana 'is the queen of Prailor, and has been since the 26th of Caelos, 957 ADR. She was born the youngest of King Erwan's five children, but succeeded him as monarch after House Tracan was decimated in the War of the Three Eagles. She is well loved by her people, though this has not always been the case. She is often seen as something of an eccentric, especially outside of Prailor. Early Life Ravana was born on the 26th of Caelos, 846 ADR, in the Corseau Palace in Levassion, Prailor, as the second daughter, and youngest of King Erwan and Kalyani Kaeceran's five children. She attended the University of Braxholm at the age of seventeen, and while in the city made the acquaintance of a number of important figures in Strian history, including Alcaeus the Exalted, whom she was given the honor of painting. She attended both the funeral of Alcaeus and the coronation of Kyrillos I. In 869 ADR, she graduated from the university with degrees in history, with a focus on Rexenor, and the arts. Ravana returned to Levassion, and stayed there for some time, but reportedly grew restless there. She eventually left Levassion in order to see the world, writing and painting as she went. She published a number of books under the pseudonym Dionisia Gauden, and her art became somewhat famous within the empire. War of the Three Eagles Ravana's role in the war was entirely diplomatic, with her never being involved in the fighting, unlike her siblings. She worked to further the cause of Straton and Valkoris, visiting many nobles across the Empire in an attempt to win their support. She was also responsible for writing a number of pamphlets on the subject of the war that were widely circulated and read. She spent six years in Braxholm after the city was taken by the Stratonites, where she struck up a romantic relationship with Valkoris' daughter Isadora. The two were virtually inseparable for the entirety of her stay at court, and they frequently made public appearances together. It is known that they intended to marry one another, but because of the escalation of the war, and Pelagios' eventual retaking of the throne, this never came to fruition. Ravana fled the capital in 957 ADR, just before it came under siege by Pelagios' forces. She made it to Levassion, and was there for a month before the city came under siege in turn. She hid in the palace's stable during the fighting, and was only discovered in its aftermath. Imprisonment and Coronation After Levassion was captured by Pelagios, all members of House Tracan that remained in the city were imprisoned and sentenced to death. The executions were turned into a spectacle, purposefully being as drawn out and painful as possible. Ravana sat in a jail cell for two months awaiting her execution, and in this time was forced to watch as her parents and her two remaining siblings, Aurélie and Chander, were put to death. Her execution never came, however, as on the 3rd of Valdus, 957 ADR, she was escorted to the Levassion Cathedral and crowned queen of Prailor. Ravana's coronation was almost universally condemned as an insult to Prailor. No aspect of it was done in accordance with tradition. Whereas typical Prailan coronations last months, in which the claimant monarch travels around the kingdom, performing religious rituals and being embraced by their subjects, before returning to Levassion to be baptized in the waters of Lake Aglaé and officially crowned as monarch, Ravana's was a mere hour, and she wasn't even dressed in the ceremonial garb, instead still wearing her prison rags. Some in Prailor refused to acknowledge her coronation at all, but these complaints have since died out. Early Reign and Regency of Alkandros Chryssomalis Ravana married Alkandros Chryssomalis on the 8th of Vulrath, 957 ADR. The two had only met a few weeks prior, and it is known that Ravana hated the idea of marrying the man, but she had no say in the matter. Pelagios had promised her to Alkandros as a reward for his support in the war. There were those in Prailor that were opposed to the idea of the Queen marrying a human, but they mostly kept quiet out of fear of punishment. The ceremony itself was lavish, and completed in Strian rather than Prailan tradition. Pelagios and Philona both attended, along with a number of important nobles from throughout the empire. The marriage was consummated that same night, which while common practice among Strian nobility, was unheard of in Prailor. Prailan nobles that had attended were shocked that the couple had not remained in public for the entire night, as was customary. Alkandros was named king regent of Prailor by Pelagios, with Ravana being declared unfit to rule. She was not allowed to leave the palace during this time, and those that saw her reported that she seemed to be "mad with grief". Servants in the palace at the time have said that Alkandros treated her poorly, but little is actually known about this period her life. She gave birth to her first child, Auréle, on the 11th of Lunarix, 958 ADR, and her second, Mira, on the 30th of Uldros, 959 ADR. Pelagios was assassinated by Philona on the 18th of Uldros, 959 ADR, and afterwards Ravana felt comfortable challenging Alkandros' control over her. He was removed as king regent in Ocni, 962 ADR, and died while on a hunt in a forest near the town of Sarveil on the 25th of Ketilon, 963 ADR. Calandra the Redeemer offered Ravana the chance to redo her coronation properly, but she refused, not wanting the previous years of her rule to seem illegitimate. Marriage to Verain Pavakar After the death of Alkandros, Ravana was under some pressure from Prailan nobility to marry an elf and produce pure elven heirs to the throne. She acquiesced, and married Verain Pavakar, Duke of Bourris, on the 11th of Tudox, 965 ADR. He had been a close friend to her in her youth, and was deeply in love with her, but she never quite felt the same, and the marriage was distant and cold, especially in its later years. It is known that she had a number of romantic and sexual encounters outside of the marriage, with the two most notable being her affairs with Sir Aniil Ashtekar, and Caterina Wranorin, who was of common birth, but was made a marquise by Ravana. Ravana had two children from her marriage with Verain, the first, Sylvain, on the 22nd of Exaltus, 971 ADR, and the second, Rolen, on the 17th of Athrin, 984 ADR. Many rumors speculate that Rolen's true father is in fact Aniil Ashtekar, but there is no way to be certain. Ravana divorced Verain in 1003 ADR after years of dissatisfaction. The two have since reconciled, and maintain a relatively close friendship. Ravana was seen as almost mad, though by no means incompetent, in the early years of her reign. Many that knew her believed that she behaved erratically, was prone to emotional instability, and held odd beliefs. Her promiscuity during these years was a part of that erratic behavior, to be certain. By 1015 ADR, however, she is seen as mostly recovered, and some consider this as the point where her rule truly began. After 1015 ADR Ravana set about repairing her reputation, which had been tarnished by her actions up to this point. She reformed the Prailan treasury, invested in a number of public works projects to modernize her kingdoms infrastructure, and built up existing Prailan militia. She also worked to bring about a renaissance of sorts, funding artists and inventors out of her own pocket. Ravana also became a more public figure, ditching her earlier reclusive nature, visiting Braxholm often, and sitting in on meetings of the Grand Council there. She became far more involved in the government of Prailor as well, hearing public complaints and sitting in on court cases personally. Within a decade or so, she was loved by her people, and seen as an extremely capable ruler, possessing a keen political mind and a strong sense of justice. Stonewrath Rebellion Despite being an outspoken critic of Calandra III's policies, Ravana sided with the Strian Empire when Ostelux rebelled, solidifying her as a staunch ally of Strios in the eyes of many. She integrated Prailor's militia with the Imperial Military of Strios, and sent hundreds of thousands of gold pieces to aid in the war effort. Two of her own children fought in the conflict, Mira and Sylvain. Mira was a key commander in the war, but took an arrow to the chest from an enemy archer, and died on the 9th of Exaltus, 1093 ADR. Mira's death hit Ravana hard, with her reportedly crying through most of the funeral. She forced Sylvain to return to Levassion, and intensified her support for the war. After the Stonewrath forces surrendered, Prailor was rewarded for its loyalty to the Empire, receiving almost double the amount of gold that the kingdom had invested in fighting the war. After the Stonewrath Rebellion Her eldest child, Auréle, who was first in line for the throne at the time, died on the 2nd of Tudox, 1126 ADR, having choked to death on a piece of meat during dinner at the Corseau Palace in Levassion, Prailor. His death also hit Ravana hard, but it should be noted that she had apparently been preparing herself for it for some time, as her son had become quite old for a half elf. When Calandra V fell ill in 1194 ADR, Ravana led to the push to have the Grand Council appoint a regent to rule in her stead, or even put a new monarch on the throne. This push failed, and the Grand Council ruled for the duration of Calandra's coma, sending the Empire into debt. After Calandra V died, Ravana twisted the Grand Council's arm, so to speak, and had them crown Evandros immediately. Ravana has something of a feud with Melanthios IV, partially because of her outspoken criticism of his rule, and partially because the two don't get along on a personal level. She has made it no secret that she believes him to be incompetent and foolish, but he can't do anything about it without risking a rebellion in Prailor. She does, however, get along quite well with his brother Demetrius, and if the many, many rumors on the subject are to be believed, was in a relationship with him before he died. He would often visit Levassion, and she, Braxholm, and the two worked together to combat the Dread Cough, as well as other problems facing the Empire. Children Titles, Styles, and Honors * 26th of Caelos, 846 ADR - 3rd of Valdus, 957 ADR: ''Her Royal Highness ''Princess Ravana * Since 3rd of Valdus, 957 ADR: ''Her Majesty Queen Ravana of Prailor Works Paintings * 'Portrait of Alcaeus the Exalted (864 ADR) '- Notable for being the last portrait that Alcaeus commissioned before his death. * 'Lake Aglaé by Moonlight (874 ADR) ' * 'Portrait of Xandra the Brave (877 ADR) '- Painted a few months after Xandra's coronation. * 'Desolation (891 ADR) '- Painting of the ruins of Rexenor. * 'Portrait of the House Xenakis (952 ADR) '- Portrait of Straton and Valkoris with their families. Destroyed. * 'Portrait of Straton (952 ADR) '- Destroyed. * 'Portrait of Valkoris (952 ADR) '- Destroyed. * 'Portrait of Isadora (953 ADR) '- Notable for being the only surviving image of Crown Princess Isadora. * '''Self Portrait (960 ADR) * The Sun (1237 ADR) '-' '''Painting of a naked dark haired man from behind. Many speculate that the subject is Demetrius. Writings * '''The Rexenian Cataclysm (945 ADR) * The Murder of Kyrillos (949 ADR) ' * '''On the Integrity of the Crown (950 ADR) ' * 'Monarchy and the People (950 ADR) ' * '''An Argument For the Two Monarch Solution (951 ADR) * 'Massacre in the Country (955 ADR) '